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Facebook Dark Post Explained
Before investing in services that you are uncertain of, it is wise for you to be aware of the vast array of advertising mediums & platforms that are available throughout social media platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, and more recently, TikTok. You might be familiar with Facebook boosted posts, but are you aware of Facebook Dark Posts? Facebook Dark Posts comprises postings that are not published directly onto the advertiser’s Business Page or feed but instead show up on the feeds of targeted customers.
Curious to learn more about Facebook Dark Post & how you could add to your advertising capabilities? We are here to shed light on the subject, so keep on reading to get the best information!
Facebook Dark Post
A dark post, also known as ‘Unpublished Page’, is an ad that does not appear on the advertiser’s Facebook business page or the followers’ timeline. Instead, it appears on the target audience’s timeline, and dark posts are labeled as “sponsored ads”.
For instance, based on a user’s browsing activity and behavior, individuals would display interest in skincare and cosmetics topics. Still, they may not necessarily follow/subscribe/like skincare and cosmetic brands’ official page/profile. Any content that the business profile posts will not show up organically on the user’s news feed.
With that in mind, Facebook enables the advertiser to place their existing post as a dark post advertisement & target those posts as ads toward anyone who has yet to be part of their audience base. The ads can be placed on instant articles, audience networks, Instagram stories, and many more.
Secondly, knowing your target audience is crucial from the start. For example, is your target audience mainly women? What is the age group? Once you know who your target audience is, it’ll be easier to choose the right social media platform for your business.
Facebook Dark Post: Pros and Cons
Pros:
- Allows you to perform A/B testing for your ads. A/B testing, also known as split testing, is a good tool for presenting two different ads to your target audience in determining which one works better. From there, you will know what to improve to achieve the best result.
- Allows you to do precise targeting. It provides a more precise targeting, which means you can target your audience more accurately based on the specific keywords or interest topics that you have input. On top of that, you can customize the ads for each target audience segment.
- Allow your official Facebook business page to be clean & tidy. Nobody likes to engage with an account or business page that has endless advertisements. In contrast, it makes the entire profile look disorganized & cluttered. Using dark posts, any users’ focus would be shifted toward your organic content & would not deviate their attention from the main message.
Cons:
- You can’t edit the post after it has been posted. As much as dark posts seem more accessible and convenient, you cannot edit the posts once you have them listed despite minor errors, such as spelling issues. All existing social activity captured prior will disappear should you edit the post as Facebook deems it to be an entirely new post with a new post ID.
- It is more costly compared to a Facebook boosted post. If you have a limited budget to advertise your business, opting for dark posts may not be the ideal strategy for you. Depending on your objective and the size of your business, opting for dark posts can help you achieve your goals but at a high cost.
- It provides less interaction. As dark posts are designed to target specific audiences, it limits the posts’ overall reach & engagement as it only serves your well-defined audience. Should you want to have more exposure, a post boosting strategy might be suitable instead of dark posting.
Dark Post vs Boosted Post
By now, you should be able to determine what kind of ad best fits your business. It’s important to remember that no specific ad type is prominently effective; it boils down to your business campaign goals and objectives. Whether you choose to advertise for a product or service, your offerings will also determine which type of post would best suit a particular market.
Boosted posts are an excellent way to increase brand awareness as it requires a smaller budget than you typically would with a dark post. Treat boosted posts as a means of increasing exposure for your brand by captivating the attention of your already existing followers and reaching out to new people who are outside your audience base and are more likely to take an interest in your Page or business.
In contrast, dark posts work much like traditional advertising where they would pop up on targeted audience newsfeeds – people who have yet to follow your business page but are within your target market as per your audience definition. Opting for dark posts also allows you to focus more on conversion tactics.
Now that you have a better understanding between the two, it is always good to have a mix of both Facebook boosted posts and dark posts to ensure that your Facebook business profile & paid performance are in optimal condition.
Do you still need more advice on how to advertise on Facebook? UnRavel is a digital marketing agency that can assist you with your online business presence. No matter how big or small your company may be, we curate our digital marketing solutions to meet your business needs. Fill up the inquiry form below, and we will get back to you as quickly as we can!